UPDATE - Flash floods kill at least 75 people in Afghanistan

UPDATES WITH DEATH TOLL, REVISES HEADLINE, DECK, LEDE, ADDS DETAILS

By Shadi Khan Saif

KABUL, Afghanistan (AA) - Flash floods triggered by torrential rains killed at least 75 people in Afghanistan's northern Parwan province, an official confirmed Wednesday.

Abdul Khalil, head of the regional public hospital in the provincial capital Charikar, told Anadolu Agency that at least 75 bodies and over 100 injured people have been brought from various parts of the province.

Images circulating on the social media show destruction on mammoth scale in Parwan and surrounding areas with volunteers digging out bodies of mostly women and children from the remains of mud houses.

The death toll is likely to rise as many people are believed to be trapped under debris of fallen houses in the remote parts of the province. Most of the victims are women and children.

The army was called in for rescue and relief efforts as the death toll kept climbing with more rain forecasted for the flood-affected areas. Defense Minister Assadullah Khalid rushed to the site of the floods to supervise the operations.

According to the local administration, police forces and volunteers are busy in rescue and relief operations in the province, less than 100 kilometers (62.14 miles) north of the country's capital Kabul.

In a statement, the presidency said the State Ministry for Disaster Management and Humanitarian Affairs was directed to provide emergency assistance to the flood victims. It said over 300 homes were destroyed in the floods along with acres of agricultural land.